Timberwolves boss David Kahn: 'We expect to challenge for a playoff spot'

Timberwolves president of basketball operations David Kahn expects his team to compete for a playoff spot if it gets and stays healthy. (Pioneer Press: Jean Pieri)

David Kahn is entering his fourth season as Timberwolves president of basketball operations. This is the first time under Kahn that talk has changed from rebuilding to competing for a playoff berth, if the team can stay close while Kevin Love (broken hand) and Ricky Rubio (torn knee ligaments) recuperate.

Kahn appears to have had his most productive offseason, adding former all-stars Brandon Roy and Andrei Kirilenko, among others. The moves caught the attention of NBA general managers, who in a poll ranked the Wolves tied with the Los Angeles Lakers as the league's second-most improved team, behind the Brooklyn Nets -- although that was before Love's injury.

Kahn sat down with the Pioneer Press this week and addressed a number of topics heading into the Friday, Nov. 2, opener, including his expectations, his future and the racial makeup of his roster:

Q: What is your idea of a successful season for the Wolves, considering you won't have Love and Rubio until at least mid-December?

A: Provided we regain our health and maintain our health, we expect to challenge for a playoff spot. I believe we have a real shot at accomplishing that.

Q: What are your expectations for the team's performance without Love and Rubio to remain in playoff contention?

A: We need to tread water. I'm not exactly sure what that means, but we just don't want to lose contact with the field and fall perilously behind in the standings. There should still be an enormous amount of the season to be played when Kevin and Ricky return.

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I can't say if we need to be at .500. I can't put a number on it. We'll know as things progress.

Q: Is your optimism different with Love and Rubio out?

A: No. It's undeniable we'll have to deal with it, but we have a lot of good young players to help compensate. I feel we'll be complete for the vast majority of the season.

Q: After learning how Love broke his hand, doing knuckle push-ups at his home, do you plan to implement new guidelines for players working out away from the team?

A: I haven't thought about it at length. That's something very difficult to do. We ask the players to be very conscientious. It's a very fine line. I don't know how you can legislate it. I don't think you want to send a message right away to the players that they have to clear everything with us.

Q: The Wolves have received national attention for entering the season with only five African-American players on the roster. What's your reaction to the debate surrounding the topic?

A: Since I've arrived here, it's been imperative for us to cast the widest net possible in attracting talent, whether the players are domestic or international. What people are seeing is the outgrowth of that. That's how we've been operating and will continue to operate that way.

Q: Are you defensive about the roster topic?

A: Not at all. When people feel defensive, they feel some sense of culpability or they have a sense of wrong. We've just been making decisions in the best interest of the team on a going-forward basis.

Q: What are you most proud about in your role with the Wolves?

A: When I arrived here in May of 2009, there was a sense that we couldn't attract talent here. Whenever I sat in meetings with season-ticket holders, there was an assertion, "What about free agents?" There was a belief that it was difficult, if not impossible, for us to attract talent. We've shown that our organization can be a destination.

We convinced Ricky that this would be the best place to start his NBA career. We signed Kevin to a long-term deal. We attracted Rick (Adelman as coach). We brought Andrei and Alexey (Shved) here. We signed J.J. (Barea) after he played for a championship team, and we signed Brandon, who was sought after by other teams. We've changed perceptions and the culture.

Q: Is there a particular move you regret?

A: Regret is probably the wrong word. Maybe hindsight. We're all human. What I try to remind myself of is the circumstances at the time and why we did what we did. What I spend more time thinking about is making certain the process was correct.

Q: Jonny Flynn, one of your first-round picks in 2009, is out of the league now. Any regrets in drafting him?

A: I don't expect Jonny to be out of the league long, but I don't know his health situation. Under the circumstances, with the lateness of my hire, I still think, to this day, about how we arrived at that decision. I didn't have a full season to work with to prepare for the draft.

Q: Do you believe you'll have a long-term future with the Wolves?

A: I think they're going to keep me around for a few more days. The ownership has an option to pick up (on my contract) whenever the season ends. I'm operating in the manner that everything we're doing is in the best interest of the franchise on a long-term basis. The owner (Glen Taylor) has encouraged me to feel that way and operate that way.

Now that we have begun the turnaround, nothing would please me more than to be here with the collection of players we have for an extended period of time. I'm not thinking of anything but that.